The Darkness of Dawn

by Braden Michael

  “It’s the Firelord!” one of the Headlanders shouted.

  Five enemy soldiers tried to encircle Asher and Andy, but they were able to deflect their attacks with little effort, catch them off balance, and cut them down. Once the enemies were taken down, Asher quickly took another moment to reevaluate the surroundings. The Emberlanders were still outnumbered but quickly gaining ground. Most of the Headlanders appeared dazed, confused, and terrified, while the Emberlanders were hyper-focused, tenacious, and ruthless.

  “KEEP UP THE ASSAULT!” Asher roared.

  The Emberland line continued to overwhelm the defenders, and the dead bodies began to pile up. What may have once been an architecturally impressive wonder was now turned into a blasted mess of rubble and gore. Steel met steel, but steel mostly met flesh as Headlander after Headlander fell.

  After carefully navigating the countless dead bodies that littered their path, the Emberlanders continued to push, eventually reaching the inner wall. The resistors at the wall were no longer alive, and the courtyard had now been completely conquered by the Emberlanders. The Headland forces who remained were now locked inside the Furakuhold’s interior, buried deep in the mountain, and several Emberlanders were furiously trying to pry the gates open, making no progress.

  The men had faces of inhuman rage and attacked the gate like the villagers had attacked Asher so long ago. Momentarily, he reflected on the events of the day and twisted his face angrily in a futile attempt to banish the memories from his mind. When the bad memories kept plaguing him, he was filled to the brim with a fury of his own. “Leave that fucking gate alone! We have a cannon, remember!? That’s not even counting the ones on the wall!”

  The men snapped their heads back at Asher, and instantly regained their composure the moment they laid eyes on him. They backed away from the gate and sheathed their swords.

  “Hundreds of them retreated inside and sealed the gates,” one of the men informed.

  “Then hundreds of them will die if they resist,” Asher said proudly. “Keep fifty men here by the gate! The rest of you clear the bodies to allow the cannon a path through!”

  With extreme efficiency, the men reorganized and moved to carry out Asher’s order.

  “Asher?” Andy asked timidly.

  “Yes?”

  “So… that was my first real battle.”

  “We had plenty of fights on the way up here,” Asher pointed out.

  “Those weren’t true fights, just skirmishes.” Andy gestured towards the courtyard, briefly observing the piles of bodies and the men who were moving them. “This was an actual fight.” Andy’s breaths were rapid, and he appeared pale and light-headed. He knelt over and started wheezing.

  “Are you okay?” Asher placed his hand on Andy’s back to comfort him.

  Andy coughed and threw up, spitting and groaning in disgust then stood up. “B—battle was, was g—” His breath was nearly out of control.

  “Ease up. Breathe slowly,” Asher said firmly.

  Andy began to breathe deeply. After multiple breaths, color began to return to his face. “I can’t believe the fucking plan worked!”

  Asher chuckled. “Well, we aren’t finished here yet. There’s still troops hiding in the actual fortress.”

  Asher and Andy scanned the wall: it was carved to look almost like a rock building, with a few openings which allowed for the castle’s torchlight to peek through. There were several points along the length of it that were possibly vulnerable to collapse from a well-placed cannon shot.

  “What’s next?” Andy asked.

  “We break the wall, root out the rest, and take Nobunaga alive.”

  “Is he even inside?”

  “We’ll find out soon enough,” said Asher.

  “We yield!” a panicked voice came from along the wall itself, speaking with a Headland accent, causing every Emberlander within earshot to perk up.

  “Come again?” Asher questioned.

  “General Nobunaga wishes to yield!”

  “Why should we believe that?” Andy interrogated.

  The voice did not reply.

  “If General Nobunaga wishes to yield, tell him to come out here! No messengers!” Asher yelled back.

  “Yes! Yes! I’ll tell him!” The panic in the voice began to tone down.

  The sound of quick footsteps pattered through the wall faintly, followed by tense silence. The Emberlanders looked around at each other. Asher and Andy gave each other side glances, then Asher turned around to face the rest of the men.

  “Emberlanders! Belay your previous orders! Join us by the wall, now!”

  The courtyard soldiers quickly dropped the bodies they heaved and scampered over to the wall. They muttered amongst one another, until the voice returned.

  “He will come outside and yield! He only wants your word that you won’t attack him on sight!”

  Should I trust this? I’ve heard that Nobunaga is a man of honor, but the Yamamotos showed the exact opposite. Asher pondered the situation, glancing around at his men and their various expressions. After a few moments, he looked up at the voice and relaxed his face.

  “You have my word! So long as he cooperates, he won’t be harmed!” Asher shouted.

  The gathering Emberlanders looked at Asher hesitantly. A loud scraping sound came from the gates as they opened inward. The Emberlanders backed away while remaining vigilant, forming a line in front of Asher.

  The Emberlanders were offered a clear look into the fortress once the gates opened. Dozens of Headlanders stood near who could only be General Nobunaga, given his distinctive black, blue, and gold armor, elderly wrinkled face, and his neatly groomed white beard.

  “I am surrendering myself and my men. We will lay down our arms and conduct ourselves with honor,” said Nobunaga.

  “The same honor you conducted yourselves with when you brought my father here?” Asher walked towards the General, pushing his own men aside.

  “You’re Asher Miller…” Nobunaga said solemnly.

  “You recognize me. Good.”

  “I had no part in the deceptive crimes against Emperor Harvey and the Emberlands, I assure you. That was entirely the decisions of the King and Prince.”

  “So, you’re just gonna blame your royalty for all the ills done to my family?” Asher quieted his voice, but his nostrils flared, and his eyes widened with anger.

  “For that specific ill, yes. However, King Hiroshi did not clue me in to any of his plots. He simply ordered me to remain vigilant during the Emperor’s visit.”

  “You were here when my father died? Why should I trust anything you say!?” Asher’s voice was raised, frightening the nearby Headlanders.

  “Prince Hideki was the one that murdered him. And my sources tell me that he is in Emberland custody?”

  Asher glared silently at Nobunaga.

  “If my sources are correct, then the man responsible for the crimes against your family is due for judgment. That should be satisfactory, yes?”

  Asher crossed his arms and scowled, looking downwards in contemplation. Should I trust anything this man says? Should I just kill him? What would Black Eyes have done with him? Carve his tongue out and break his bones?

  “Tell me, General. Why did you choose to surrender?” Asher glared into Nobunaga’s eyes and awaited an answer.

  “Because most of my forces have been vanquished. If I choose to fight you and don’t surrender, I will die along with the rest of my men. If I do surrender, my men and I may avoid a needless death.”

  “Name a good reason I shouldn’t award you with that needless death.” Asher took a couple slow and deliberate steps towards Nobunaga.

  “I can provide you with valuable information on the Headland and Midland forces, for one. And that’s not the only reason to spare me, I assure you.”

  Asher uncrossed his arms and stepped back from Nobunaga. He paced around contemplatively. Black Eyes would never spare this man, he thought.

  “General, I will spare you
…”

  Nobunaga smiled, subtly exhaling with relief.

  “If you kneel before me and proclaim me the Emperor of the Headlands.”

  Nobunaga looked up at him, taken aback. Even the Emberlanders looked shocked, trading glances with one another and muttering among each other.

  “Your Grace…” Nobunaga’s voice trailed off.

  “Your Majesty.”

  A few Emberlanders chuckled with slight nervousness, continuing to mutter amongst themselves. The Headland soldiers stared at Asher and Nobunaga with incredible uncertainty. Nobunaga looked back to his men and studied their faces with a cocktail of pride and shame in his own. Before too long, he turned back around to look at Asher with a resigned face.

  “I will gladly trade my pride for the lives of my men.”

  Nobunaga took a step closer to Asher. His armor softly clanked as he lowered himself to a knee, stiffly listing his head downwards. Asher looked smugly at both Nobunaga and the other Headlanders.

  “Asher Miller, by right of conquest, you are now the Emperor of the Headlands.” Nobunaga’s voice had a disingenuous tinge but was just subtle enough for Asher not to get angry.

  Asher looked at the Headlander soldiers, all of whom continued to look at him fearfully. He motioned them to walk outside. “Leave your weapons inside, then walk out,” said Asher.

  The collective sound of dozens of swords, spears, and daggers clanging on the ground echoed from within the fortress, accompanied by the mutterings of the Headlanders. Soon afterwards, dozens of them began filing out of the gate with their hands raised.

  “Your General has made the pledge. You will too.”

  The men continued to gather in the courtyard, gazing at the dead bodies, the Emberlanders, and their new Emperor with great distress, but they resigned and knelt. Asher gazed upon all of them, highly pleased. There’ll soon be unity, he thought.

  CH 36 – Vaishalla VII

  The Battle of Robinsport was considered the most decisive victory for the Rocklands in the history of the Empire, but the Rockmen were not without their own losses. More than half the cavalrymen had perished, and many others were wounded, while an undeniable chunk of the infantry and a small contingent of archers died fighting within the city while besieging the ships. In total, 1,386 Rockland soldiers died. I’ve had only one victory, and 1,386 losses, Vai reflected.

  Archard had seized enough ships to ferry around 12,000 soldiers. Before Vai departed on the voyage, she had sent a hundred men with Elizabeth back to the Robinsfort, and the remaining men were to join the Rockland forces currently assigned to the Midland front.

  Vai was aboard the Umi throughout the multiple week-long voyage to the Eikiport. The Umi was a prominent warship in the Headland Navy, touted as one of the nimblest ships in all of Dawn. The ship preferred functionality over lavish comfort but the men saw it as a welcome upgrade from the army encampments. The ship had cots in the crew’s quarters, a bountiful supply of ale, and a modest captain’s cabin, which Vai had taken up residence in.

  Vai spent most of her time trying to enjoy the silence of the captain’s cabin but was lost in a quagmire of thoughts. Her primary concerns were about those who had died fighting for her, the fights to come, and the uncertainty of her family’s fate. Adrian’s kiss had succeeded in making her even more confused, but it was a welcome distraction.

  Adrian spent most of the voyage in the crew quarters but came to visit Vai in her cabin one evening. He gently knocked on the door in the middle of the night, and she groggily let him in.

  “To what do I owe this visit, Adrian?” Vai sat up in her bed.

  “I wanted to see how you’re holding up.” Adrian pointed at the bar table with his eyebrows raised, then walked over to it once Vai nodded at him.

  “All right, I suppose.”

  “We haven’t properly talked since the day of the Battle,” said Adrian, beginning to pour two glasses of wine.

  “Ever since you kissed me,” Vai replied, forsaking tact.

  Adrian blushed as he began to drink from his glass, then poured himself another. “I wanted to apologize—”

  “Why?” Vai asked pointedly and playfully.

  “Uh, I was too forward, I guess? In the heat of the battle, my blood was up, and I got a little zealous,” Adrian explained, slightly embarrassed.

  “And you think it bad that your blood was up?”

  Adrian began to chuckle nervously. “What I meant was—”

  “I’d rather you bring me that glass of wine than stand there and stammer,” Vai teased.

  Adrian nodded and sauntered over. Vai’s fingers brushed against his as she took the glass from his hand.

  Vai took a sip. “I don’t normally condone speaking ill of the dead, but I didn’t love my husband. Surely you’re smart enough to have picked up on that.”

  Adrian nodded reluctantly. “You were never happy around him, from what I could tell.”

  Vai finished her glass. “And now I’m a widow.” She handed him the glass then glanced at the bar table. “Feel free to bring the bottle.” She and Adrian shared a chuckle.

  Adrian came back with one of the bottles and sat down on the bed next to Vai’s feet. “So, you don’t mourn for him in the traditional way, I take it?”

  I can’t admit I poisoned him, can I? Vai took a healthy sip from the bottle to buy herself time to think of a proper response. After a long moment had passed, she finished her sip and exhaled, refreshed. “He had no love for me either, you know.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “He had four wives before me, none of which successfully bore his children. All of them died or disappeared under mysterious circumstances. I wouldn’t have been any different.” Vai continued to binge drink.

  “You can’t be serious.” Adrian sounded horrified.

  “He subtly threatened me, the night before leaving for the armistice. Told me not to disappoint him when he got back, for my own sake,” said Vai.

  “I always thought he was incompetent, but never a murderer.” Adrian’s tone suggested he did not want to believe but could not help himself.

  I’m a murderer too, Vai thought. “Come here.” She lifted the bedcover and patted beside her.

  Adrian was hesitant, but he shifted himself over. Once he sat beside her, Vai rested her head on his shoulder and they settled into one another.

  “I won’t allow myself to think of him. Right now, I’m concerned with this war.”

  “Do we know what role the Emberlands has been playing as of now?” Adrian inquired.

  “Asher Miller increased his shipments of firedust to us, and Prince Hideki murdered his father, so the Emberlands are definitely on our side,” said Vai.

  “An alliance with the Emberlands would mean victory for both us and them,” said Adrian.

  Now that I’m a widow, that alliance can be sealed in matrimony, Vai realized. She was not outright opposed to the idea of a diplomatic marriage, but Asher was an unknown quantity. He could prove crueler than Peter ever was, or he could prove the ideal husband.

  “Is Asher up to the task of fighting in a war?” Vai asked.

  “From what I’ve heard, he’s no stranger to fighting, but he’s young and unproven,” said Adrian.

  “Perhaps time will tell,” Vai surmised.

  Adrian began to run his fingers through Vai’s hair. “You were also unproven once. The men are all thoroughly impressed with your willingness to fight with them. They’ll fight for you with absolute loyalty,” Adrian said reassuringly.

  “I’m glad to hear that, but the safety of my family is the only thing I care about right now.”

  “I look forward to meeting your family.”

  “I hope you get the opportunity to.”

  Vai fell asleep within minutes, and her worst fears were brought to life in her dreams that night. She witnessed the faces of each of her family members turn into ashes after the flames consumed them. Her younger and older siblings, her mother, and her elderly father m
elted away and she stepped into a harrowing abyss scorched by darkness. She woke up terrified, sweating profusely, but Adrian was nowhere to be found. She took a moment to breathe deeply and calm down before changing out of her bedclothes and into her battledress.

  Adrian stood outside the captain’s cabin, speaking with Lord Archard. When Vai came out to the hall, they stopped talking and glanced over at her, offering their greetings.

  “Good morning, my Empress,” said Archard.

  “And to you, my Lord.” As Vai walked forward, the boat listed and shifted to a slightly dramatic degree, destabilizing her footing along with Archard’s and Adrian’s. “Rough seas. Are we long for Eikiport?”

  “We should be there soon,” Archard informed.

  “And the men know not to waste time once we dock, yes? We must work quickly at all times,” said Vai.

  “I’ll see to that myself,” said Archard.

  Vai nodded, and Archard walked off towards the staircase at the other end of the hallway. Adrian and Vai took a moment to look at one another and smile politely before heading towards the staircase themselves.

  As Vai ascended the stairs towards the deck, the smell of saltwater filled her nose. The late morning sun shocked her eyes into stiff blinks as she peeked outside. Once her eyes adjusted to the brightness, she looked around the deck, which was teeming with Rockmen. The walk to the bow was relatively quick, and the Rockmen acknowledged her with the utmost respect as she passed them: in turn, she offered them handshakes, smiles, and polite words.

  “The men have a newfound respect for you, your Majesty,” said Archard.

  “That’s what Adrian has told me, and I’m very glad it seems to be the case.”

  Archard motioned towards the sea that surrounded the ship. Dozens of ships were on either side of their own, and far out in front of all of them was a vast coastline with the Eikiport straight ahead. The port city was just as Vai remembered it: small relative to Robinsport but lavish in its design with distinct Headland architecture and marble-coated towers along the length of the walls.

  Vai kept her eyes fixed on the city with cold determination the entire way. Once the Umi was settling into the dock, she looked down to see dozens of dockworkers setting up the final preparations for the ships. A Rockman turned a crank and the docking arm slowly began lowering to the pier. Vai began walking towards the docking arm with Adrian and Archard shortly behind her. Waiting on the dock were a few dockworkers and an older man dressed in a lavish blue tunic.